Warning: Jury Duty Phone Scam Making the Rounds

 

Have you received a phone call from the “Fairfax County Sheriff’s Office” saying that you have missed jury duty? Recently, we’ve seen an increase in scammers calling citizens, claiming they have failed to appear for jury duty and a warrant would be issued. These scammers, claiming to be deputies, use unregistered phone numbers and caller ID with masking/spoofing technology to make the call appear as if it’s coming from the actual Sheriff’s Office phone number. The scammers are requesting store gift cards, pre-paid debit cards or money orders for court costs and fines.

If you have received a jury duty summons, and want to confirm it, you can contact the Circuit Court jury duty clerk at 703-246-7816 (press 0).

 

If you think you might be the victim of a scam, please file a report online with the Financial Crimes Section at http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/police/financialcrimes/ or call 703-691-2131. You can file other reports online as well via http://www.fairfaxcounty.gov/police/reportcrime/.

 

Financial Crimes Detectives also want you to be aware of common phone scams:

EXAMPLE: IRS/Legal Action Scams: Callers claim they are from the IRS, a government agency or a law firm and you owe money. If you do not pay immediately, they threaten the police will show up at your door and arrest you.

EXAMPLE: Family Member Critical Emergency Scams: Callers generally claim your teenaged/young adult-aged family member (grandson/daughter, nephew/niece) has been arrested, is in jail and needs money, either for bond or court fees. They will ask you to wire money to a non-existent attorney or bondsman, or possibly to a friend who will pay the alleged fines so they can be released.**The scammer could know your name, your family member’s name, nicknames commonly used, and other accurate details about you and your family (i.e. actual college they attend, state in which the real family is located, etc.)**

 Detectives want to remind you to NEVER wire money or use preloaded debit/gift cards to pay a fine. To read more about PHONE SCAMS and how to PROTECT yourself click here!